Scattered Thoughts . . .

I have so many photos from our years at the lake house that I don't have a clue what to do with them all! Whenever I go back to look through photos from previous years, I always find a few to share that haven't been shared before.  Lately, we've been talking about schedules at the lake house for this summer... who might want to visit,  who gets which timeframe,  when to schedule trips for resupplying food and drinks, etc. Needless to say, the lake house has been on our minds. It is this time of year when we are both ready for some time at the lake but it is also the time of year when I need to start getting ready for our summer.  I must ensure that all our lake house stuff is ready to go... chairs, canopies, the kayaks, the sailboat, radios, lights, life preservers, etc. Once the snow clears out, I need to get hopping on this stuff.  Of course, most years the snow doesn't clear out until late April or early May...  sometimes not until early June... ...

We got up at 5am this morning... my spine has been killing me... pain through the left side of my pelvis radiating to my hip (I'm even feeling it through my groin... fun times) ... and enough pain that it is keeping me up most of the night so we got up at 5am this morning and, fortunately, we were treated to quite a show! First, we saw blue sky! That is a bit unusual at the lake early in the morning since the lake is often shrouded in fog at this time of day. This morning was beautiful! (It is now overcast, windy and we are experiencing a passing shower.) Next, as I was sitting here at my desk overlooking the lake... with Sheila sitting on the couch beside me... I noticed something floating in the middle of the lake. It looked like a log... then it started changing direction slightly and we were debating whether it was a beaver or something along those lines... we both agreed it was too large to be a beaver...  I grabbed one of the cameras off my desk... the one with the l...

Since I'm having some rather poor health this week, I've been trying to focus on improving my photography and videography. Over the past eight or nine years, I've done a lot of coursework in photography and, as a result, my photography has improved significantly over time. I just started studying videography very recently so that still needs a lot more coursework and practice. In the meantime, I have photography to help feel a bit productive on days when I'm struggling with my health. Our time at the lake is again close upon us so this is foremost in our thoughts now. Since the lake is what we've been thinking and talking about everyday, I've been revisiting old photos from the lake. I am sharing two panoramas here...  This first panorama was shot while I was in my kayak... I shot five handheld shots while sitting in my kayak... it was our last night at the lake this particular year. Sheila, Adam and I went for a short paddle before tying the kayaks on the...

This time of year, we are always wishing we had the time to head to the lake again. Actually, I have time... it is energy that I lack! Regardless, it would be nice to spend some time at the lake house again before the snow flies.  I like paddling around with my photography gear when nobody else is out on the lake... early morning is the most pleasurable for me. It is quiet and there are far fewer bugs than an evening trek at dusk!  When I'm in the mood for wildlife photography, I know I need to set aside a lot of time because most of wildlife photography involves being still and quiet while patiently waiting for a photo op to present itself. You just sit quietly and observe... you need to be aware of your surroundings to ensure the best backgrounds in your photos... you need to find the best location to take advantage of the angle of the light... you need to constantly and carefully jockey the boat around to stay pointed in the correct direction... and you wait... you care...

The six foot tall piles of snow outside our bedroom window have now melted enough to allow the early morning light to stream into the windows affording me a view of the kayaks and sailboat sticking out of the snow in the yard. This, naturally, reminds me that the boats and car roof racks will need some work before we can take advantage of the incredibly short boating season here in Vermont. The melting snow also reminds me it is Springtime and I need to get started on my to-do list which was put on hold due to weather conditions. I have plenty of home improvement projects which need to get done too but getting the boats ready for summer is always the first priority. I have learned that if I delay getting the boats ready, it will be too late in the short season to even try to get the boats ready and then we never get out on the boats at all.  My focus is on getting the boats ready for use for the start of summer in June... and that gets me thinking about getting back out on La...